Spicy Shrimp Fried (Cauliflower) Rice

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Shrimp, peeled and deveined, raw or uncooked
• 1.5 cup Brown Rice, cooked
• 1.5 cup Riced Cauliflower (1)
• 1 small Onion, chopped fine
• 1 bunch Green Onion
• 3 Eggs, scrambled
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1/2 tbsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1/2 tbsp Garlic Powder
• 1 tsp Paprika
• 1 tsp Chili Powder
• Red Pepper Flakes
• 1/3 cup Soy Sauce
• 2 tbsp Sesame Oil
• 3 Eggs, fried (optional)

Directions:

1. Rinse shrimp, dry, and put into a bowl. Season with 1/2 tbsp sesame oil, cayenne, garlic powder, paprika, and chili powder. Mix to combine and set aside.
2. In a large pan (2), scramble your eggs, then remove them and keep them separate. (3)
3. Turn up heat to med-high. Add 1 tbsp sesame oil to the pan and a little bit of avocado oil, then add onion, garlic, sprinkling of red pepper flake (4), and green onions. Save a portion of the green part of the green onion for an infusion of flavor and color at the very end.
4. Cook, stirring often to prevent burning or sticking, until the onions are very well softened and brown, ~10 minutes. (5)
5. Remove this mixture from the pan and add to the scrambled eggs set off to the side. Add a small shot of avocado oil to pan.
6. Cook shrimp, if raw, until fully cooked through and pink. If using already cooked shrimp, cook for 1-2 min per side, searing and getting that spice mix to crust up on the shrimp. Remove the shrimp from the dish and add to the other cooked ingredients.
7. If using fresh, uncooked cauliflower, add that to the pan first and cook for ~10 minutes until softened to your liking. If using frozen and reheated cauliflower, add it and your cooked brown rice now, and sauté for a couple minutes, allowing the rice to scoop up the remaining seasonings in the pan.
8. Optional step: If you like scrambling the eggs into the rice, now is the time to do that. Now is also the time to get your fried eggs cooking, as the dish only has a few minutes left until ready to serve.
9. Optional step #2: If you want to add more veg to the dish, you can use frozen chopped veggies, such as peas and carrots. Now is the time to add those to the rice and cook to heat through, then continue to the next step. (6)
10. Add half of the soy sauce, remaining 1/2 tbsp sesame oil, and rest of the cooked items to the rice. Cook for 1 min, then taste, adding as much of the soy sauce to the dish as you think necessary.
11. When finished to your taste, add the greens from the green onion and stir through. Serve with another sprinkling of green onion over top, and a fried egg or two if desired.

Notes:

1. For this dish we did half brown rice, half cauliflower rice. We used frozen, riced cauliflower from Trader Joes. It was a small bag so we did the entire bag. Preheat and fully cook the cauliflower in the microwave prior to adding it to the pan. I’ve done riced cauliflower from scratch before, and A) It’s a pain to chop an entire head of cauliflower on your own, and B) it takes a while to cook it to the softness that we like. Frozen, reheated is definitely the way to go. You could also make this dish with all brown rice, all cauliflower rice, all white rice, or any combination of them.
2. I like using the largest non-stick skillet I have for this. I’ve had bad success in the past using cast iron or stainless because eventually I have too much sticking. If you have a wok, or a cast iron with an amazing patina, feel free to use those. Non-stick is just personal preference for me based on past experiences.
3. I go between scrambling eggs ahead of time and scrambling them with the rice. I did ahead of time for this dish and liked it. I’ll add a step in the directions, step 8, to show you where you’d add the eggs if scrambling them directly with rice.
4. I did my normal shake of red pepper flake and my wife thought the dish ended up being a tad too spicy. Remember that the shrimp is seasoned with cayenne for heat, and the rice will pick up remnants of the spice left in the pan, and also when you add the shrimp back. Try less than you think for the first time, then adjust up in future cooks as needed.
5. This is where chopping the onion small helps to speed up the cooking process. Smaller pieces cook faster, and I think integrate better into the rice later too. I don’t like when the onion pieces are bigger than the rice.
6. I’ve made fried with with and without peas and carrots. Much like the scrambling of the eggs, it’s usually a game time decision, and it’s however you’re feeling. Can’t go wrong either way, and it’s a great thing about this dish, the customization of the ingredients.

(tm)